I didn’t care about the yellow suit worn by Spain’s Queen Letizia yesterday, but thankfully, Letizia brought the glam for the state dinner. The Spanish king and queen are currently on a state visit to Britain, and they are staying with Queen Elizabeth in Buckingham Palace. The Brits are rolling out all the stops… for some reason. I suspect the reasons are Brexit-y and have to do with, like, trade deals. Don’t pay attention to all the wheeling and dealing behind the scenes though… just look at the pretty photos!

All of the major British royals came out for the state dinner, but Letizia put them all to shame in this gorgeous, rich-looking red gown. This is gown is by “Spanish fashion house Loewe, which is currently headed up by Irish designer Jonathan Saunders.” Update: The Telegraph later updated the ID on this gown, which is Felipe Varela. It’s lovely. She’s lovely. The jewels are on-point too. As for the other queen, QEII, she wore a white satin gown by Angela Kelly. She coordinated the look with her diamond-and-aquamarine set, a matching tiara, necklace and bracelet.

As for the other royals, there aren’t that many photos around. Camilla wore white, like QEII, only her gown was Bruce Oldfield. Camilla also wore “a sash with the Dame Grand Cross of the Victorian Order and a Queen’s Family Order brooch gifted to her by the Queen on her 60th birthday.” Kate was there, but there were only a few photos. She wore a really cheap-looking (is there any other kind?) lace Marchesa, in a horrid shade of beige-pink. The Queen also made Kate wear some big jewelry, and of course it didn’t work. Kate wore the Queen’s diamond-and-ruby necklace and the Lover’s Knot tiara. Blah. You can read more about the dinner here.

205 Responses to “Queen Letizia in Varela vs. Duchess Kate in Marchesa: who looked the best?”

Comments are Closed

Kaiser, Letizia’s gown is by Felipe Varela who is her go-to designer for formal occasions like this. Not Loewe. I think Letizia had never worn Loewe except for owning some purses.

Then again, who really cares which designer it is because that dress is amazing. And Letizia looked divine. When she brings it on, nobody can compare. Yes, not even Maxima of the Netherlands. Letizia’s posture and bearing and confidence really shone with this outfit and did you see her in the video looking like she’s floating down the corridor on the way to the banquet hall? The hem of her dress is a darker shade of red and camaflouges with the floor so it seemed to just barely graze the floor and didn’t disrupt the movement of the dress. This is the wonder of Felipe Varela. He “gets” Letizia and everything he creates for her is fitted perfectly. She’s always had a minimalist style and you can see that with all of her outfits. She could’ve worn jewelries all over but practiced restraint to let the tiara stand out. The result is regal, tasteful, and stunning.

Kate, on the other hand, showed who she is: no identity and zero personality. Lace AGAIN. Boring. Plunging neckline and back? Bell sleeves? That big necklace with a tiara as grand as the Lovers Knot? No. And the dress was too long that the hem was pooling at her feet and she looked like she was kicking it out the way as she walked. Ridiculous.

Entitled Donothing cant pull off all that deep flashing- lace and bling knot with necklace…in some DM photo about in bony chest flashing – the tiara is covered hidden with the leaves from the floral arrangement- just show waity is not meant to wear C/Knot..

I think her enthusiasm covers up for a lot, but every so often Maxima does pick something tacky. The all-over beaded red and silver dress with the harlequins comes to mind. Put feathers in her tiara and she’d look like a Wild West Saloon Girl. Or that black fringe thing that mimicked monkey fur fashion of the 1930s.

Kate looks bad from the tiara down. I get Willnot and LazyKaty feel the need to remind everyone about Diana at all times, but this tiara was a very poor choice. I don’t think it suits Kate or flatters her at all.

I agree it is too low-cut for a state banquet. Straight on it is not so revealing. But seen from the side–what a seated dinner companion would see–almost the entire breast is revealed, especially if Kate’s posture is as bad as it usually is.

I’m in the too-low camp. Similar to another (ugly pale pink) outfit from the AU/NZ tour where she was flashing her lingerie and underboob at groups of kids. The necklace didn’t need a neckline that low; it could have been 2 inches higher and still work with the necklace. Or over a very plain bodice, no need to flash skin to display the jewels. The plunge front and back plus the stupid sleeves – over-done and ridiculous as if she’s cosplaying Marie Antoinette. It screams celebrity try-hard, not royal.

JFC @ Merritt, ‘PRUDE!!’ is such a weak and overused response to a legitimate argument for wearing appropriate work attire. Grownups understand that one’s work attire should emulate the boss which in this case is QE and that banquets are not the place to display one’s wares.

It’s time for you to grow up Merritt and learn how the adults behave in an adult work place.

Agreed, MinnFinn. The neckline is inappropriate for the occasion and her workplace. It would be inappropriate at most of our work places I suspect, even an after hours work event.

bluhare, no indication on the fashion websites that there is any ice skater mesh in the cleavage. We can clearly see the shadows of the side-nearly-under boob so mesh is unlikely. Ever if there was, that doesn’t negate the deepness of the neckline and sheer mesh doesn’t count as “covering up”.

Merritt, if she worked more than 60 hours a year, we could focus on her work. When she spends 200,000 a year on inappropriate clothing and barely works? Very little else to comment on.

British Royal dress protocol and Swedish Royal dress protocol are different, just as Spanish dress protocol doesn’t care how high Letizia’s heels are.

A State Dinner during a touchy State Visit with Spain? That is a VERY traditional workplace, one that has strict dress protocol. Her neckline is inappropriate. Far too low, too much exposed, obviously there to try to get attention.

I would love to focus on something other than Kate’s clothes because frankly, they bore me to tears. Alas, Kate can’t be bothered to actually DO WORK, so here’s what we are left with.

The BRF is conservative (they still require pantyhose, for goodness’ sake!). As their representative, Kate’s neckline is entirely too low. It’s not prudish or a desire to pick her apart–it’s about dressing for the workplace you have and respecting your co-workers, in this case HM TQ and the Spanish king and queen as well. Like most things where Kate is concerned, she didn’t try and came up lacking.

Dressing appropriately is a sign of respect for your guests and your hosts. Again she shows she is not up for this role and again she showcases her laziness. Instead of working on her ridiculous accent, she should have been learning protocol and decorum.

Now Letizia is a vision of elegance and looks gorgeous in that dress. She makes it look easy.

I didn’t even notice the neckline – that huge necklace requires some space! – and I’d wager a guess that no one who was actually there gave it a second thought. I think she looks nice and I cannot see what’s inappropriate.

Personally I don’t see any netting Bluhare. And the designer doesn’t mention “netting’ in the descriptions of the dresses this bespoke version was based on. But even if it was netting all it would do would prevent a boob from accidentally falling out if Kate moved wrong way as a skater might do during a routine. It wouldn’t stop everyone from seeing down to the under-boob area (as that area quite clear in the photos.)

Thanks for the link Bluhare. I still don’t see anything remotely like netting between her breasts. I do see a shadow between her breasts but women have that even if totally nude. I do see some fuzziness that is apparent everywhere else in the photo of her body/face due to the quality of the photo. And I do clearly see under boob. Something the dinner companion seated next to her likely also saw when conversing with her.

Guys, if you look at link Bluhare has posted, focus on the last diamond drop pendant of the necklace. It’s clearly resting above her skin rather than on her skin. That implies that there is fabric in that area even if it is invisible to the eye.

Further, the resting pendant has created a strange shadow around itself that elongates to one side of the space of the V of her dress and no where else. That is shadow created by pendant on fabric

Whether there is invisible/clear netting there or not holding together her ice skater costume doesn’t matter. What matters is the depth of the neckline (down to the bottom of her boobs) and the flashing of side boob. Sheer netting doesn’t count as being “covered up” and doesn’t make this an appropriate neckline.

The neckline could have been 2-3 inches higher and still framed the pendant fine. Or she could have worn one of her many plain evening gowns with straight-across neckline which would have shown off the necklace just fine.

I rather agree with this, I think they both looked, well, like princesses bringing it on for a gala evening. I happen to be partial to dusty rose shades, and I like the plunging back and front but I would have liked it better without the bell sleeves – why Kate always screws up sleeves its beyond my comprehension. I also like the lover’s knot tiara and the ruby/diamond necklace – but not together. A get why she wore the necklace, the V shape drops into the neckline so nicely, but it’s too heavy with the lace and competes too much with the tiara – something more delicate that didn’t overpower the lace would have been better. Kate seems to have trouble putting together different sections of her outfits that are “weighted” appropriate, for lack of a better word.

But they both look very grand, which was probably the point. I love Letizia’s dress, it is flawless, and I envy her being able to wear that color, it makes me look like old cheese. My only criticism of her outfit is that she is very small and fine boned and I think the tiara might be just a tad too big.

Eh… with regards to Brexit, our government couldn’t even organise a p*ss up in a brewery. Brexit in its own way is dying on its feet. The Brexiters aren’t crowing about independence and domino effect and what not now.

@ Elaine – had the voters not been completely misled by the Brexit Camp the result may well have been very different. Recent research ( sorry I can’t link from this bloody iPad) also suggests strongly that if we had a referendum now the result would be different. I agree with LAK ( who was saying this last year) there will be argy bargy, the EU will make some reforms and, if our politicians have an unexpected streak of common sense they will give us a vote on agreeing to the terms of Brexit ( which will be bad) and we will vote to remain. The problem is we will probably lose all our ‘exceptions’ as a result and will be in a far worse position than the one we started with. We can thank the fat faced fart that is David Cameron for this huge clusterf*ck and his alignment with a far right f*ckwit to hold onto power. God, I really hate politicians.

The thing is, we’ve triggered Article 50. The two year time limit is ticking. At the end of the two years, we’re out. No one knows whether we can revoke the Article 50 notice or not, so it would likely be decided by the Court of Justice of the European Union. We have no idea how they would decide. And if they didn’t let us revoke, we would have to apply to come in again. Requiring unanimous agreement of all 27 countries. With no rebate. And we would have to adopt the euro.

There is no hope for us, unless a very small needle is threaded and public opinion changes quickly enough that the government has the guts to attempt to revoke Article 50 and the CJEU lets us do it.

Tina: i agree with you, BUT the EU has pulled shenanigans in other countries to overturn a result so even if article 50 has been triggered, a way will be found to walk that back. And the u-turn will sound so plausible that most people won’t object.

I have no faith that they will let us walk away.

Apple: as soon as Diana divorced Charles, she ceased to be a member of the family.

Further, her title of POW was predicated on being married to Charles because they were only acquired because of her marriage. As a divorced woman she forfeited them.

If she were alive, when Charles became King and he was married to Camilla, Camilla would be the Queen Consort.

All of this to say that as a divorced woman, she wouldn’t be Queen Consort because she wouldn’t be married to the King.

I think she and Kate have somewhat similar colouring, and Letizia’s look here is an example of why Kate should wear stronger colours from time to time. Although colours don’t bring poise and confidence, which Letizia has in spades and Kate often lacks.

I always thought Letizia was tiny but I guess her husband just makes her look short? Because Phillip is pretty tall! I mean, I know he has shrunk and that she is wearing heels; but still, I was surprised to see this! Kate’s dress is pretty, nothing amazing; but not bad either. She can’t pull off the big jewels though. Letizia certainly can! She looked fabulous!

Such bling at this event, wow! But agreed, Kate can’t pull off the big jewels at all. They’re wearing her, not the other way around. It’s like her posture gets even worse when laden with all those rocks. The poor woman has no presence, no charisma — which, alas, is part of the job requirement these days.

Kate looks deflated/depressed in these images,you know,like she’s thinking “Danm,that Letizia is blowing me away and I’m not the center of attention “😔I have felt this way before like you get dressed put in lots of effort to look your best but the outfit just doesn’t work and you don’t have time to change,so you’re stuck at an event uncomfortable and wishing you could just put on your favorite jeans.

As someone who believes in republics, and that no one has the divine right to rule, I’ll, despite my strongest political instincts, admit that Letizia looks positively regal. There’s a reason they hid Kate behind a floral arrangement and a pineapple.

I agree Letizia looks the part and I am cackling at Kate hidden behind the pineapple.

I saw a program on the BBC that in the 1800′s pineapples were a sign of wealth, and people that grew them would rent them out to others hosting fancy parties, you could look, touch but never eat the pineapple. They had a value at the time of $8,000 for a single pineapple!

Pineapples were indeed valued in the Middle ages by dint of their rarity. They were a showing off wealth item because of the lengths required to obtain one. They were given pride of place as precious as the most valuable item in the house. Even if they went off.

Hahaha, so did I, LOL!!!! Whoever took/published the picture did not make Katie any favours. She positively looks out of depth and deeply bored. And ignored. What is she doing, paying keen interest in a discussion?
Slightly disappointed here, I wish there were more pictures of KK. Maybe they will be published in another post.
BTW Letizia slays. Can’t fault her. She looks AMAZING!

It’s funny to see people on the English-language internet compliment Letizia so much, when in Spain she’s about as popular as Kate Middleton is on Celebitchy. She’s criticised for being very into plastic surgery (look up her photos from 10 years ago), for being aloof and work-shy (a ’9 to 5′ royal), for dressing inappropriately to formal events, and for hiding her daughters from the media at all costs. And all those scandals! Kate is pretty safe and boring in comparison…

It’s actually funny to see how Letizia is always criticized and lambasted in the Spanish tabloids. Almost 15 years as a royal and the same “scandals” are repeated over and over again as if it is proof of how unpopular Letizia is. The best bits were the ones accusing her of being a drug addict and alcoholic, beating her daughters, being an abusive wife to Felipe and screaming at King Juan Carlos, being the cause of all the troubles in the royal family, and generally a terrible person. And yet none has been proven and every account of her from ordinary people have all said she is lovely, warm, articulate, and genuinely nice.

And work-shy? How? The 9-5 was a throwaway answer and a statement about not being on holiday because the press follows them to Mallorca and demands they pose for pictures even when it’s a supposed “vacation”. The Spanish press is always demanding things and when they don’t get it, they blame Letizia. Compared to almost all royals Letizia is one of the busiest, only bested by Felipe and, no surprise here, the senior British royals. Spanish pink press always creates sh*t out of nothing. The same Spanish press where a “journalist” called Letizia a pig on national TV because Letizia asked a woman not to take a picture of her daughters while watching a parade and she was just protecting her children. The Spanish press who used to draw caricatures of Letizia as a witch because of her nose, then also criticized her when she fixed her nose. The Spanish press who made malicious rumours that Letizia’s daughter Leonor must be deaf and disabled and that was why they were “hiding” her. LMAO. The trash Spanish tabloids have made lots of money destroying Letizia’s image and character and still they have not succeeded in bringing her down. All the criticisms Kate gets is nothing compared to the vitriol Letizia had gone through ever since she was presented as Felipe’s fiancee. She was never given a chance by the Spanish media, which is ironic since she was a journalist and one of their own. And they still praise criminal Infanta Cristina and her sleazy husband even when they are the cause why King Juan Carlos sped up his abdication, they damaged the royal family image almost beyond repair, and almost brought the monarchy down. But sure, Letizia is a botox monster and is lazy and has scandals. LOL.

@Esprit – scandals like Letizia is an atheist, she had an abortion (never proven and all gossip). I’ve never read of her dressing inappropriately for formal occasions. All scandals brought forth by shady people cashing in on destroying Letizia because she is a big moneymaker for Spanish media. Anything about her, especially gossip, sells well. There is a Latin American forum called Cotilleando dedicated to posting hateful stuff about her and her kids.

@Maiden,
I agree she is not popular here, but I have never listened or read some of the things you say here like being a drug addict and alcoholic, or beating her daughters. She has a reputation for being arrogant, sometimes rude and yes, she wants to be a 9-5, Monday to Friday queen, which is just not possible. Also, yes, she is criticized by her countless plastic surgeries. Have a look at her before and after. She was an attractive woman but she had a different face.

Wow Maiden, I didn’t know how hard the press was on Letizia. As you say, it doesn’t make sense since she was a journalist herself. A little shocking to hear that Cristina and her husband get good press after everything that happened with them. Do they still cover King Juan and his hunting trips and his female companions? Poor suffering Queen Sophia.

@From Spain, have a look at Vanitatis and what Paloma Barrientos had been saying about Letizia for the past 13 years. Also Jaime Penafiel who said Letizia would be the doom of the Spanish monarchy when she was still Felipe’s fiancee. The articles about Letizia being a secret republican and an atheist who was out destroy the royal family. El Mundo who blamed Letizia for being a strict mother with her daughters’ education as if Felipe is an absent father and as if Letizia gets to call the shots in raising the future queen of Spain. And all the countless articles about her time in Mexico where she supposedly flew to New York to have an abortion. Accusing her of two-timing Davis Tejeras, and leaving him for Felipe, even when David said that was a lie.

And don’t forget the lovely, lovely articles about her being the cause of her sister Erika’s depression and suicide and how Letizia never reached out to her sister because she was too busy living it up as a royal. Ugh. And did I mention Letizia was 7 months pregnant at the time and they even criticized her for not curtsying properly to Juan Carlos while she was crying at her sister’s funeral, and for showing too much emotion and tears when answering the media’s questions? Yes, that all happened and I’m not making that up. Letizia had been through a lot with the Spanish press that you need to have a good memory to even remember just how cruel they have been, and still are, to her.

@Sharon Lea – abdication worked wonders for Juan Carlos. Now he is free of media scrutiny and managed to save what was left of his legacy and good will from media and public. Queen Sofia also looks happier these days, and the relationship between her and Juan Carlos seems much improved without the pressures of royal life and reigning over a country. It is Felipe and Letizia who were left to clean up the mess Juan Carlos and Cristina left behind…yet it is Letizia who still gets the brunt of criticisms for everything and anything.

Maiden, I think the relationship between Sophia and JC has improved because it doesn’t exist. They no longer have to put up the fake front they’ve been peddling to the public since 1974.

The only surgery I see is the rhinoplasty which was announced by the Palace as health reasons. Everything else is people trying and failing to prove any others. Lots and lots of skin care regimen, likely well-applied Botox, but nothing more. The anti-Letizia crowd claim more because they think she’s vain, but she was a tv journalist. If she was doing surgeries related to her looks, she would have done them before she went into tv.

She was hated by the old guard because she’s not aristocracy. One of those old-guard is the main culprit in the anti-Letizia brigade, the one Maiden mention. It includes a hate forum even worse than RoyalGossip or the one created just to hate on Meghan Markle. She was hated by others because of a short-lived marriage and quick divorce. And if she was Republican, more power to her. It serves a monarchy well to have a member who understands just why the People want the monarchy to end.

Some think her style is too casual because she, gasp, wears trousers to work. Her early style was bad because she had style advice from Sophia and Cristina that was all wrong. Once she reverted to the classic style she had pre-Felipe, things were fine.

Behind-the-scenes, she was dealing with a jealous SIL (Cristina) and a king that deliberately side-lined her for years (again because of Cristina). The yellow Spanish press abused her sister and likely contributed to her suicide. Whenever people think the criticism of Kate Middleton is “hate”, I think of how little she is really criticized in comparison to what Letizia has been through for 12+ years.

Re: Letizia’s scandals, it’s nothing as sordid as what’s been mentioned here. Her first husband was her high school teacher and her cousin and former BFF wrote a tell-all including personal details, namely that she had an abortion before she married Felipe that she tried to wipe from the records (and literally presented receipts). She was also atheist/agnostic or at least non-practicing before her marriage (absolutely normal and non controversial in Spain), not to mention a republican, but basically ‘converted’ in order to marry the Prince (seen as a sign of hypocrisy). In short, when she got married, her career/resume/ journalistic career as an international correspondent was slightly exaggerated (she didn’t even speak English) and her past was carefully ‘cleaned’ (no photos of her first marriage exist for instance). These aren’t rumours or attacks by the yellow press. Anyway in Spain she’s more criticised for her obsession with her looks and clothes (including changing her face completely since around 2008 – you just have to look at it!) and her attitude towards her duties. By the way, she and her husband are known for keeping the heiress to the throne and her sister away from public in unreasonable way – they’re the least seen children among European royals.

From Spain, some insist she’s had chin surgery, but when you look at current pictures taken from the side, she has the same chin. She also doesn’t smile nearly as big as she used too. Again, looks like skin treatments, careful Boxtox, and good makeup to me. When you see her out shopping – no makeup – you see she doesn’t look that different from earlier years.

Plum, the likely faked documents from a cousin who tried to wrangle favours out of her and she refused. Automatically puts them in the faked-to-try-to-force-her-hand. And who cares? Her body, her choice. Abortion was legal in Spain at the time with doctors permission and it is none of anybody’s business. Ditto her first marriage. This was before the era of social media, and if they were a private couple why would there be loads of pictures around anyway?

Who cares if she wasn’t Catholic? Only 30 percent of Spain are actually practicing Catholics, most don’t care. Autumn Kelly converted to marry Peter. Mary converted to marry Fred but describes herself as spiritual not religious. Ditto Mette-Marit and her constant searches for self in the Himalayas. Kate Middleton wasn’t confirmed until just before their wedding. Maxima did not convert and somehow stays in the good graces of the Catholic Church even though their kids are raised Protestant. Wasn’t Camilla Catholic at one point too?

She has an undergrad and masters in her field. She was an international correspondent who reported from Ground Zero and the Middle East. She was voted best newscaster under 30 in Spain. You cannot take away her career accomplishments; they’re literally on film.

The kids aren’t kept away from the public. They’ve brought the girls out for public duties for years. There are photos of her shopping with the girls published and not removed from publication. She and Felipe are photographed out having dinner or at the movies and they do not protest them. They have photoshoots of the family for the press. The eldest took sailing lessons last summer and pictures were published.

Another important thing to keep in mind: Spain’s monarchy is riddled with actual, serious scandals. Felipe and Letizia stepped in when JC abdicated and have been walking a careful balance ever since. I’ve often thought that the old guard hates Letizia because she represents the fact that their way is on the way out and they’re fighting tooth and nail.

Her plastic surgery is minimal and well done. For a person in the public eye can she be blamed for keeping herself looking refreshed? If she didn’t then she would be called a hag. The press has fixated on her for being like most women her age in the real world.
She isn’t perfect but it really is over the top with her.

Thanks for all of the recaps everyone. I try to follow this family, but don’t see as much press being an American. I hadn’t heard about her sister’s suicide, that is so sad. Its unbelievable the press would say she didn’t curtsey correctly to JC at the funeral. And I had no idea there was a hate forum against Meghan. Wow. The comments on DM have been awful towards her, so it must be that crowd. I like Meghan and Letizia for the record. And I like Kate, but wish she would do more and wanted to do more for the public.

I have always found Letizia to be beautiful but I don’t blame her for her nose surgery – the constant bullying over her features woould have driven me to the plastic surgeon, too. And if she corrected a deviated septum (I do believe her medial reasons), then all the better!

Those who hate her for merely existing, being a divorcee or “aloof” need to examine themselves, grow up and try to be kinder.

+1000
Queen Letizia looked amazing in the off shoulder red gown last night and it helps that she is poised and photographs well.
She is also looking beautiful tonight in a blue gown at a formal dinner at Mansion House in the City of London. Tonight’s tiara is even nicer the one for last night’s state dinner and her French plait chignon is also on point!http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/07/13/19/424E9A2400000578-4694136-image-a-99_1499972302172.jpg
She also wore a lovely Carolina Herrera skirt to Westminister Abbey today.

“Princess Kate” irks me no end. As someone not born a princess, she wouldn’t be called Princess + her name as per BRF rules. People mag ran with the Princess Kate thing even though they were told it’s wrong and they don’t do the same thing for Camilla, Sophie, etc. So obnoxious.

True, she’s not “Princess Kate”, any more than Diana was “Princess Diana”. Kate is Princess William of Wales and Diana was the Princess of Wales, full stop. Kannot is properly referred to by the title she received on her wedding day, which is Duchess of Cambridge (no name preceding, please). Of course, in the media, she’s given all kinds of nicknames.

Actually, unless I’m mistaken, Kate is a royal Duchess, which is different from an ordinary Duchess, and Kate’s ducal title carries HRH – the rank of Princess, even if she’s not called “Princess”. I believe her passport says, “Princess of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and blah blah blah.” Ordinary duchess is “Your Grace”. Royal duchess is “Your Royal Highness” so Kate IS technically a princess, albeit only by marriage – but that’s the way it works. One day, when Charles steps up to King, William will step up to Prince of Wales, and then Kate will be Princess of Wales . . .

She is technically Princess William, but would never be princess in her own right nor Princess InsertHerName, unlike Princess Beatrice or Princess Eugenie. The Ducal title is higher, so that is the one used.

Ugh, too bridal from Kate again, with all that pale pink lace. From that blurry background photo her dress looks like early 19th century court fashion. I think the low cut neckline works for her, but if it wasn’t for all that fussy lace, it would have showed off the jewelry a lot better.

Letizia looks amazing as usual, so regal and elegant. That dress is fab and she carries it so well.

Being a strong introvert, the idea of having to attend events stresses me out. I do them anyway and act like an extrovert. It is my job to be there and put other people at ease (due to my position and the org I represent being the one running most of the events). I’m there to learn about them, their work, and what they need my org to do for them. I go home and collapse afterwards, but I do my job.

Suck it up, really. She is surrounded by people who want her to be interested in them. All she has to do is ask a couple of questions and get them to talk about themselves. That’s the problem – no interest in other people.

i am not a fan of the Spanish monarchy, but I must admit that Leticia brought out the big guns for this dinner. She looks stunning.

There are certain things that I like about Kate’s dress, but the bell sleeves are a big NO. They are taking it firmly into costumey territory. Those are the moments I have to doubt her fashion sense (and that of her advisors, i.e. mom and sis).

Is it wrong that I laughed at Kate still not having the family order. Six years in and still nothing. Even Camilla got it after 2 years, as did Sophie. Fergie never did though….
Letizia won this by a mile. Absolutely stunning.
Kate’s is just bad. Mismatched tiara, necklace and earrings. Plunging neckline, horrible sleeves and from the back it reminded me of the dresses worn by Keira Knightley in Pirates of the Caribbean. It was also to long.
The long hair is back too.

That could be possible @Alix. Probably a barter to allow him see more of his grandchildren. Maybe Billie cannot have his ways with the Queen, but yes with his father. The most sensible thing Charles could do would be to start a process to abolish the monarchy. Nor Bill neither Harry are worthy to reign.

Same here, I awaited the pics to see whether K got the royal family order. And I laughed. Not hard though. More like “I knew it” kind of laugh. Not that I knew it, of course not, it was more of a thought based on the comment that @notasugarhere left me on the merits for receiving the order. As Katie has not worked enough, she was not granted the order by the Queen. This might explain the fact that she looks bored. Most likely, embarrassed at the fact that she does not have it in her sixth year of marriage. I don’t know who all the attendees are, but for someone at her level, Kate Middleton has the least to show. Erm, except legs and private parts.

@Kitty – I don’t know how the jewelry thing works – the RF women receive them as gifts from the Queen and when the said women pass, the jewelries return to the Crown? In which case those pieces do not belong to those women.
In my personal view, no amount of jewelry makes up for lack of ethic/work. Kate receiving the RFO based on sheer personal merit would a lot more valuable.

If they belong to the Crown they are not “gifts” and are never owned by the person wearing them. HM usually assigns women certain tiaras to borrow in their lifetime.

She likes to hide things away for awhile before bringing them out again, like the Aquamarine Bow Tiara that showed up on Sophie a couple of years ago. A lot of speculation and research later, it turned out to be something HM had worn in Canada in the 1950s and put away.

That’s why I’m thinking Teck Crescent Tiara for whomever marries Harry. It hasn’t been worn in years. There’s also been talk lately about a turquoise parure (set of jewelry) that was once Margaret’s personal property. It might be back in HM’s personal possession. If so, that could end up on a future bride of Harry’s too.

I wasn’t sure if the mix and match tiara, necklace, and earring combo was a no or not. That necklace is FAB, but it doesn’t seem to go with the rest?
The neckline of the dress is pretty with the necklace, but I’d love another color and also fabric.
When I first saw the picture where she’s blocked partially by the flowers, I honestly thought that was what they had done with her hair.

The mismatched jewelry always bugs me. She is terrible at choosing jewelry to wear, even when it is a casual pair of earrings, the shapes don’t go with the lines of the clothes. And we all know the Jigsaw jewelry buyer was a cushy gig, but didn’t she learn a single thing those 6 months?

I would’ve liked to have seen that set of jewels that I believe was a gift to her upon marriage from either William or Charles–they were diamonds and rubies I think? I remember she wore them with a black gown when she presented some award. I think those would have looked nice with this dress–or at least maybe just the earrings.

It is up to the monarch to determine when they think a person has earned it, and it is for personal service to the monarch. Diana at 18 months, Camilla at 2 years, Sophie at 5 years (but the first three she wasn’t a working royal).

Whether or not you like her personally, Camilla stuck in to royal work, shows up, acts engaged, and does her job well. That’s likely why she was given the Order – because she works effectively for the Family Firm.

Fergie didn’t receive one, but their marriage imploded publicly before the 5 year mark.

Queen Letizia all the way!! She has confidence and great style. Kate looks mediocre at best. Somehow Kate just doesn’t have that glamour and “it” factor that makes you notice. Next to Queen Letizia, Kate might as well be the wallpaper.

I was glad to see Kate wearing significant jewelry, but I agree that it seems the necklace is wearing her. The rubies are also not right for the dress. At first I was like, yay she is wearing something different. Yes its lace but yesterday I said it would be a high neck lace Jenny Packham gown and this was not it. I think the neckline and the back are very pretty, even if its lace and the color is all wrong.

Then I saw the whole thing and I thought…..ugh. In the picture of Letizia with the Queen, you can see Kate in the background and she looks like an extra from a 19th century period piece.

That’s what I’ve been saying for a while now, especially after Ascot this year. Kate’s look is starting to appear to be turn of the 20th century. She constantly looks like she’s in extra in a Victorian play.

Beside Letizia s minimal jewellery and graceful posture all of the ladies of BRF looks trying to hard and nouveau rich.
Kate looks like a sullen child but the queen in her pristine white is not making a pretty pic either. She looks like an old lady trying desperately hard to pretend she still matters.

Queen Letizia for the win! Princess waity better step her game up because if Meghan joins their corporation the same way she got outshined at this event by Letizia, waity will be outshine by Meghan every time they’re in the same room.

I watched the event live on YouTube and every time they panned to Kate she was licking or smacking her lips. This is a woman who has no confidence. She really needs to study for her role. She has access to the best people to train her. I do not understand why she does not improve herself. Training would give her confidence to succeed.

@Scottiegal ITA. I’ve been asking myself the same thing. I read somewhere, don’t know if here or DM, that actually it’s Billie who pulls the strings and does not allow her to improve herself to avoid being overshadowed. As I wrote this, two things came to my mind: (1) it could well be that despite the love he has for his mother and the example she’s given, he does not want Kate to do better than him (he does nothing), and (2) the echo of his parents’ marriage, where the balance in peoples’ opinion was in favour of Diana, is too strong.
At the same time I do not find hard to believe that Kate was interested in this marriage marriage for status and carefree life. She’s put up with way too much of bad press for too many years. She’s ambitious. But I doubt she lives a happy life. For a person with that much privilege, she looks too tired and anxious. Even with make up and the carefree life in terms of earning a living (she does not earn her living) and all the help she gets (children’s upbringing and household chores). Billie is happy with the lifestyle of doing the minimum and she follows to keep him happy. Not that she could actually do something to make him change his mind. She does not have the leverage. Or the intellectual capacity. Or the interest.

Honest, non snarky question:
Is it apropos for Kate to wear that necklace with the tiara? I probably lean toward matchy matchy ness in general but it seems like those two with the earrings are too much and they don’t go. I don’t recall Diana wearing big, over the top non-matching necklaces WITH the tiara but my memory fails me. Am I being overly critical or are the three too much together? Maybe it’s Kate’s frame but I never felt like the jewelry wore Diana but this looks to me like it’s Kate hidden under a pile of mismatched jewels.

That being said, I’d wear that shit to Dunkin Donuts with my sweats if I could!!!

No, I agree with you AD. I think the three together are no-go. I like the tiara with the pearl earrings; they look really nice together. They’re Diana’s earrings and she wore them with that tiara. I swear Kate’s going to get as much of Diana’s personal jewelry as she can. I hope some is left for Harry’s wife.

I adore that necklace; my god I’d wear it to bed. But I think it should have been paired with a diamond tiara and a dress of another color.

I actually think it’s a statement. Kate doesn’t typically wear a ton of the big stuff, and I just don’t think she has an eye for it yet. But her wearing this kind of bling shows that they’re bringing out all the stops for the Spanish, that the visit is a big deal. It’s interesting.

I think that a formal state dinner is the wrong occasion to get daring with a very low neckline. Perhaps it was Kate’s way of stealing a little attention from the younger Queen. The color of Kate’s gown did her no favors. It almost clashes with her skin tone. The huge necklace while stunning, doesn’t work with that gown. A more delicate necklace would have looked better. And red rubies with that icky pink? No. The two Queens look beautiful. Saw other photos of the state visit and wonder why Charles is acting so weird. He was being very awkward with Letizia.

Leti is nearly 10 years older than Kate. And while I like the Georgian-inspired look of her gown, they would have had fabric across the chest — like a tank top under the v-neck, if that makes any sense. Kate’s small-breasted, though, so can pull off a neckline like this. It gives that gorgeous necklace some room. Shame it doesn’t work better with the tiara.

The British and Spanish royals have always been close and there hasn’t been an official visit from a Spanish king since 1986 I think I read on People. It surprises me it took this long for Felipe and Letizia to officially visit England. Love Letizia repping Spain in her red dress! Also she wears a lot of Felipe Varela this is well-known. If the Spanish press says it’s Varela, it’s definitely Varela.

Kate’s dress is awful, there is just no other word for it. Sorry girl.

The criticism is pairing of diamonds, pearls, AND rubies. Pick diamonds and pearls, skip the rubies. If she wanted to wear the rubies? Skip the pearls. Wear one of the two all-diamond tiaras at her disposal and a pair of diamond earrings that she has worn before.

For me personally, I also dislike pink paired with red. Always looks like a tacky Valentine.

+1
All of the jewels are great pieces separately– but her combining of the pieces is not on point. She really does not have a knack for accessorizing despite her years (I mean, months or weeks?) working as an accessories buyer for whatever that company was…

Letizia wins hands down.
Kate looks as if she has raided Diana’s old wardrobe and pulled out a ball gown from the early 80s. I seem to remember Diana in a ball gown with a similar shaped skirt and bell sleeves.
I liked her hair up and she looks good in the tiara. However the necklace just didn’t suit her and didn’t match the tiara. She would have been better in some diamond and pearl bling.
Like others, I had a quiet snigger when I saw she didn’t have the family order yet and was also positioned in a corner behind a large table decoration.

Letizia looked every inch the queen that she is. Kate just doesn’t have the gravitas to pull off all those bling pieces she was wearing. Her dress was…both dated and too daring. I was moderately impressed with the low cut, until I saw the side boob. Too low. The sleeves were awful and I’m baffled by the trend towards them. All in all, Kate’s dress was a colonial period mess. Too long. Too much lace. Too overwhelming. I’d feel sorry for my criticism if I didn’t know in my heart Kate tried to come for Letizia and came up SHORT. She truly thought she would outshine Letizia and didn’t. And…no family order. She won’t get one until Charles is King.

I don’t know if she will even get one until then. Once Charles is King, he is unlikely to feel the need to still placate Will and if Kate still hasn’t picked up the workload by quadrupling her current output, why does he need to bother?

The Queen is not giving Kate an Order because it’s obvious that Kate doesn’t understand duty. Six years later and look at where we are. (Notwithstanding the decade before of waiting and doing nothing). She does nothing of note and has no real voice. She will be 36 soon and look at how little she has done with her life and privilege compared to her late mother in law. The Queen is old school and doesn’t fall for the PR. She knows her better than anyone in the public and the lack of an Order is very telling about what kind of person Kate actually is.

Letizia’s dress is absolutely stunning. However, I’ve never liked the sashes worn by European royalty. They just look dumb to me and ruin the look of any dress. I know that many people love them but I just don’t.

Kate looks like a kid who got into mom’s closet and put on some clothes to play dress up. The gown is a horrid color, hate the lace. The neckline is pretty but not for a state dinner. It would be like me wearing that neckline to a business meeting.

They’re Orders given by the head of state. Presidents of some countries can give Orders, too. Some depend on the level of service a person has performed for the country, but in most royals’ cases it just depends on their ranking. Monarchs usually get the highest Order of the land, while junior royals usually get the “lowest” Order and eventually get awarded higher Orders when they become senior royals. King Felipe was awarded the Order of the Garter yesterday while Letizia did not get one as she is a consort. So the sash she wore last night is the 2nd highest Order in Spain, the Order of Charles III (same with Philip’s sash) while Felipe wears the Order of the Garter sash and HM QEII wore the pin for the highest Order in Spain, The Order of the Golden Fleece.

The Queen opened the vault, didn’t she! All of the jewels are gorgeous. Is the tiara Camilla is wearing part of the Royal family or one of her own? I really like it, it looks great on her. Kate doesn’t have the head for such a big tiara, but I do like it.

Letizia looks amazing. She’s making Kate look like a child playing dress up.

I think Camilla’s tiara which she wears a lot was the Greville tiara and left by Lady? Greville to the Queen Mother. On her death it went to Elizabeth II who still owns it – not Camilla’s.

I think Kate’s necklace was also part of the Greville collection – google it.

Letizia was beautiful and all her outfits gorgeous. She has obviously had a lot of plastic surgery though and I heard two abortions.

Kate’s dress was too light for such heavy jewellery and although the necklace and tiara lovely, they should not have been worn together.

Kate should get a tiara that suits her just as Camilla has made the Greville tiara her own. She should lay off Diana’s stuff and become her own person. I do feel sorry for her though! Anyone see the tennis star interview with Sue Barker? Kate was nice.

Loved Queen L, Waity looked like she was cosplaying Wolf Hall but at least she has finally upped her jewellery game. The neckline was a bit too low for the occasion but luckily she wasn’t falling out of her dress.

Waity really did look like she wanted to be elsewhere – she was not comfortable. She’d better get used to it, this is what she and her family spent 10 years chasing after.

I know this isn’t the point, but there’s no trade deal to be done between the UK and Spain, since Spain is in the EU.

Whatever the point of this visit is, the UK can’t do preferential independent pre or post brexit trade deals with EU members. That’s one of the reasons why brexit is possibly the stupidest thing any group of people has ever done, not even excepting the election of the Trump family.

I think one of the best features of Letizia are her personality and the way she carries herself. Just look at the posture, I am so jealous! Kate, per usual looks bored and disengaged and it seems that the weight of the jewels are taking over.

It seems William and Kate did not receive an Order for this State visit. Harry, Andrew, and Anne all got the Order of Isabel the Catholic for their participation during this visit since they would be accompanying Felipe and Letizia to some events as Harry has already done today. Meaning, William and Kate have zero activities with the King and Queen of Spain and thus, did not deserve any honour. And they’re more senior than Harry and outrank Anne and Andrew. As far as I know, the two Lazies have nothing scheduled for the duration of this visit so why they’re not participating except for last night’s dinner is beyond me.

The lower the curtsey, the more respect you are showing. Bobbing up and down, the way Kate does it indicates little respect.

And is says alot about how much Anne respects Letitzia and Felipe because she forced HM to change the order of predence in the BRF so she didn’t have to curtsey to Diana, Fergie, Camilla, Sophie or Kate unless they were with their husbands. Her status as a blood prince superseding their own.

@Lak, thanks for the explanation re Ann’s curtesy. It was quite something ! I can’t recall seeing a BR female memeber cutseying so low to another monarch (but then I havent been really paying attention to these royal visits before now).

I think TQ and PP like Felipe and Letizia – a lot. There have been lots of smiles on this trip and personal warmth. I do think I see a few blushes for TQ from all that handkissing and soliticiousness from the handsome Felipe. What a guy! He and Letizia make a great couple. I like them.

I read somewhere that that HM is very comfortable around other monarchs, since they are all part of the same “club” so to speak, and they can talk to each other as peers.
I would be speechless around Felipe, for sure.

Letizia is a real Queen! She knows how to carry herself and just embodies her position. As for Kate… That dress is one of the fugliest things she has worn in the last years and that is saying a lot. Besides, i think Kate’s posture is my pet peeve. Those arched shoulders get on my last nerve